


Thoughts

by magumarashi



Series: PMD2 Writings [2]
Category: Pokemon Mystery Dungeon: Explorers of Time & Explorers of Darkness & Explorers of Sky
Genre: M/M
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2015-06-29
Updated: 2015-06-29
Packaged: 2019-03-13 07:39:14
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,489
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/13565916
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/magumarashi/pseuds/magumarashi
Summary: On his first night back from the terrifying future, Hamlet stays up late thinking about Dusknoir, as per thesummary.





	Thoughts

**Author's Note:**

> I kinda wanted to make clear in working with these characters again that Hamlet’s feelings for Dusknoir aren’t exactly healthy for a lot of the story haha…
> 
> (I guess I should also mention that all my PMD stuff is written with the characters as gijinka lmao)

Grovyle woke up slowly to the sound of distant waves far below. The sky outside was still dark. A dark sky had meant so little to him for so long, he almost didn’t take notice. The sound of the waves brought him back to reality: this was not the future, but the past. A past where the sun still rose each morning.

He took a cautious look around, as had become his habit when he woke up during the night–he always did. Matches snoozed away on the pile of straw next to him, sleeping so peacefully that Grovyle envied him. The other straw bed was empty.

Grovyle rose, alarm rising to form a lump in his throat. Where was Hamlet? Careful not to disturb Matches, Grovyle slunk up the stairs and out. The wind coming off the sea was cool on his face, and he shivered. He scanned around hurriedly before his eyes finally caught a small form sitting crouched near the edge of the cliff. Grovyle walked over carefully, making just enough noise not to take him by surprise.

“Can’t sleep?” asked Grovyle.

“Yeah…” said Hamlet, “I’ve never been great at sleeping on the ground…”

“Fair enough.” Grovyle took a seat next to him, “Something on your mind? I know the past few days have been pretty rough for both of us…”

“Yeah,” said Hamlet distantly. Grovyle eyed him quietly before responding.

“Thinking about Dusknoir?”

Hamlet smiled weakly.

“Was it that obvious?”

“Just a wild guess.”

Hamlet looked down at his feet.

“Yeah. I’m thinking about Dusknoir.”

He let out a quiet sigh, hoping Grovyle wouldn’t notice.

“Hey,” said Grovyle, “I know I called you stupid earlier for going along with Dusknoir’s schemes, and… I’m sorry. You couldn’t have known that he’s not trustworthy. There was never any reason for you to doubt it until now.”

Hamlet nodded.

“It’s alright,” he said, “We were both pretty stressed out.”

“Yeah…” Grovyle grimaced, “Still though. I failed to see things from your perspective.”

The breeze picked up, and a particularly large wave broke on the rocks below. They sat in silence for a little while, listening to the waves crash against the cliff.

“I can’t stand it,” said Hamlet finally.

“Stand what?”

“I can’t stand that I can’t understand Dusknoir at all. The more I think about it, the less I feel like I know.”

“What do you mean?” said Grovyle, “What’s there to understand? Dusknoir is a blindly loyal servant to a cruel and unstable master. He only cares about fulfilling orders, and it doesn’t matter what disgusting things he has to do to get there. He’s the lowest of the low.”

“But that can’t be right,” said Hamlet.

“What, you still think he really was a humble explorer?”

“No, that’s not it either,” said Hamlet, “It’s just… well…”

Hamlet wondered if he should share what was on his mind–but he figured he didn’t have much else to lose at this point.

“I’ve been thinking about a couple weeks ago, right before you were captured,” said Hamlet, “Dusknoir… I invited him out here to talk to him about something and ended up… sharing a kiss…”

Grovyle made a face.

“Oh, _gross_! I can’t believe this– _that’s_ why you’re so stuck on Dusknoir?! You had a crush on him?”

Hamlet smiled sheepishly.

“You may not like it, but it’s the truth,” said Hamlet. His expression darkened, “… and it made me that much easier to manipulate, I suppose.”

“Yeah, I bet.”

“But there’s something still bothering me,” Hamlet continued, “I can’t get it out of my mind. When we kissed… well, I asked first, and initiated the first one. But after that, Dusknoir returned it. And… he smiled at me. It was soft, tender–the most beautiful smile I’ve ever seen, and I can’t believe he saved it just for me…”

“Ugh, spare me the details,” said Grovyle, “I can’t picture Dusknoir kissing anyone, Hamlet, I really can’t.”

“But that’s the thing!” said Hamlet, “That smile was so pure… it was unlike anything I’d ever seen from him. It was different from the cheerful expression he wore when speaking to the guild members or the people in town. It was so… _honest_. Yeah, I think that’s what it was. That smile–I’m sure that was a glimpse of the real Dusknoir.”

Hamlet drew his legs up to his chest.

“I want to see more of the real Dusknoir,” he said quietly, “Not the humble explorer or the cruel servant…the Dusknoir who can smile so beautifully. I want to understand why he acts the way he does–why he hides that wonderful smile.”

“Wow, I take back what I said earlier,” said Grovyle, “You’re not stupid, you’re hopeless. Forget I said anything.”

Hamlet laughed.

“I know. I’m a mess, aren’t I…? Still clinging to someone so awful, for one tiny moment where I can believe he isn’t…”

Hamlet’s mind wandered uncomfortably to the execution room. He could still hear Dusknoir’s chilling voice:

_“You were beginning to become a distraction, so my master ordered me to… to execute you myself.”_

_He paused,_ Hamlet thought to himself, _He wavered when he delivered my sentence. What did he mean, I was becoming a distraction? For whom? Could it be that he really…?_

The sky had gradually begun to lighten behind them. Hamlet noticed that the surface of the sea was visible against a teal-grey sky. He turned to look over his shoulder, glancing at the tops of the hills in the east. Dawn was fast approaching.

“The sunrise…” said Grovyle, “It’s funny. I spent my whole life in the world of the future, where the sun never rose. The first morning I spent in your world, the sunrise took me completely by surprise. I was so used to darkness that I had forgotten that things like trees and flowers had color. Watching the sun rise was refreshing unlike anything else. I really wish Amleth had been there to share it with me…”

Grovyle trailed off as his throat tightened painfully.

“The world of your future…” said Hamlet, “We have to make sure _that_ tomorrow never comes. I don’t want any Pokémon to have to wake up to a world without sunlight.”

“Yeah. That’s priority number one,” said Grovyle, “I’m prepared to make the ultimate sacrifice if it means that Pokémon of future generations can know the sun and seasons.”

“Sacrifice…?” said Hamlet.

“Of course,” said Grovyle, “If we alter history now, the future that I come from will cease to exist. I will probably disappear… along with Dusknoir, Celebi, and everyone else. But that’s something I knew going in. I’ve come to terms with it, so don’t try to pity me or anything.”

Hamlet looked down. The sun began to shine between the rocky peaks behind them.

“If we do this, Dusknoir will…” Hamlet began. He looked back at Grovyle, “No. Even if I could be certain Dusknoir did have feelings for me, it doesn’t matter now. Restoring Temporal Tower is more important. Everyone else–every Pokémon in the world is more important. I’ll alter history, even if… even if it means Dusknoir will disappear as a result.”

Grovyle smirked.

“Good. For a second there I was worried.”

Hamlet stood up.

“You’d better go soon,” he said, “It’ll be light out, and someone might see you.”

“Don’t need to tell me twice,” said Grovyle, standing up as well, “I’ll keep in touch. You two do your best with the guild for now. I’ll see you around.”

“Yeah… see you, Grovyle.”

Grovyle disappeared into some bushes, rushing away at a speed Hamlet didn’t think possible. He returned his gaze to the sea, which sparkled in the morning light. His mind wandered back to Dusknoir–to their brief shared kiss.

_The memory of that day… this scenery, the feeling of your lips on mine, that gentle smile… those memories are still precious to me after what’s happened. But for now, there’s something even more precious that needs to be addressed. Something tangible, real–-more real than the feelings I had for you. The truth is that this world is in danger. I will not turn away from that truth, even with these memories in hand. And if you try to get in my way, I will not hesitate to stop you. My love is not more important than the millions of lives who are depending on me._

“Besides…” Hamlet said quietly, “Now that we know each other’s true colors… there’s no way things would’ve worked, Dusknoir.”

He knew Dusknoir couldn’t possibly hear him, but for a moment, Hamlet wished he could. It would spare him the agony of trying to say all of that to the Pokémon’s face–-if he even got the chance at all.

_Now isn’t the time to dwell. There’s a lot to be done._

Hamlet’s gaze turned toward the entrance to Sharpedo Bluff’s cave.

_I’d better go wake up Matches._

 


End file.
